Lanny Poffo Has Passed Away At Age 68
Lanny Poffo has passed away at the age of 68 years old.
The news of his death was shared by his friend, WWE Hall of Famer “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan on social media.
“With a very, very heavy heart, I’ve been asked to let everyone know about the passing of our friend and colleague Lanny Poffo, The Genius. RIP Lanny”
With a very, very heavy heart, I've been asked to let everyone know about the passing of our friend and colleague Lanny Poffo, The Genius.
RIP Lanny pic.twitter.com/4ve4J2HSHT
— Hacksaw Jim Duggan (@RealHacksawJim) February 2, 2023
Lanny came from a wrestling fan as the son of a talented wrestler named Angelo Poffo and his brother was WWE Hall of Famer “Macho Man” Randy Savage, who is considered by many to be one of the greatest wrestlers of all time.
WWE has also written about Lanny Poffo’s death on their website:
“WWE is saddened to learn that Lanny Poffo, best known to sports-entertainment fans as The Genius, passed away at 68 years of age.
The son of Angelo Poffo and younger brother of WWE Hall of Famer “Macho Man” Randy Savage, Lanny Poffo had a style all his own. Arriving in WWE in 1985 alongside his brother, “Leaping” Lanny Poffo was one of the first high-flyers in WWE. While he achieved some success as a fan favorite reading his own poetry and throwing Frisbees to the crowd, he reached new heights as The Genius while managing Mr. Perfect.
WWE extends its condolences to Poffo’s family, friends and fans.”
Lanny started wrestling in the mid-1970s as he made a name for himself in the NWA as well as other promotions.
When Lanny signed with WWE in 1985, he started a seven-year run during a period where the business was very strong thanks to the first WrestleManias, the rise of Hulk Hogan and other things.
While Lanny didn’t have a spectacular run as “Leaping” Lanny Poffo, he still was featured regularly on television and a lot of fans knew him in that era.
In 1989, Lanny became known as “The Genius” as a smart, cocky bad guy that would recite poems and other things to annoy the fans. The Genius was also the “executive consultant” for Mr. Perfect, who was one of the top heels of the late 1980s into the early 1990s.
One of the biggest matches of Lanny’s career was at the Saturday Night’s Main Event 24 on November 25, 1989 when he faced Hulk Hogan for the WWF World Title. The Genius actually won the match by countout, but of course, Hogan kept the WWF World Title that night.
After his WWE run ended, Lanny worked for WCW from 1995 to 1999 even though he only wrestled once. He remained under contract for about four years thanks to being Macho Man’s brother.
In 2015, WWE finally inducted the late, great “Macho Man” Randy Savage into the Hall of Fame with Lanny proudly accepting the honor on behalf of his brother.
Everybody at TJRWrestling sends our condolences to the family, friends and fans of the late, great Lanny Poffo.
